Venturing Graces

Chapter Ten: Final Song of the Cursed Blade

(Cursed Sword Arc)

Ren followed Yuka into the tiny wooden shack. "I can finally have my drink!" They thought. Yuka stood there panting with her purple hair disheveled. In front of her stood a woman with long black hair with stripes of red. She only wore a navy blue bra and tight fitting black leggings. Ren stopped in their tracks as their face flushed red. Rose and Hex followed after. 

"Where's the sword?" Rose asked. She held a sword made of glass. 

"That woman is the sword," Yuka answered. She had a cut on her cheek and one of her claws broke. "She's fast." The woman charged with her hand turned into a curved golden blade. 

"Yuka!" Ren called out. The woman slashed at Yuka, the demon girl was barely able to block. "Where's that guy?"

"He's resting outside, the dogs are keeping hold of him," Rose answered. Ren extended and hand and began to chant the words to the power sealing spell. "So this woman is the sword?" Rose thought. Yuka flew into the wall. "I'll take it from here!" Rose swung her sword at the woman's head. 

The woman dodged to the side and then kicked Rose's feet out from under her. She raised her sword hand. "Shit! My spell doesn't seem to work on her," Ren thought. They ran over to Yuka with Hex in tow. "Hex, don't bother fighting her, there's no way you'll win."

"You don't know that! I am the master of swords," Hex said. He summoned his silvery blade. 

"You'll lose, I predicted it a while ago. Hex, you're pretty much useless," Ren stated. They worked on healing Yuka. "Yoru was much better at this than me, not only was he faster but he didn't need to chant a spell," Ren thought. 

Rose was backed into a corner by the woman. "That's right, Orochi is outside with that guy," Ren realized. They drew their scissors from their satchel and ran at the woman. She turned around and slashed at Ren. Hex managed to pull Ren back by the hood of their jacket. "I'm going to have one last drink," Ren decided. They slipped the can out of their strap and chugged the bitter contents. 

"Wait! Ren! Stop it that's beer!" Rose yelled. 

"You alcoholic!" Hex yelled. Ren fell over backwards and lay there. "I guess they can't handle their alcohol." The woman went to stab Ren, but they caught the blade in between two fingers. "Ren!" Ren bolted up and quick as a flash vanished. They reappeared behind the woman and kicked her in the back. The woman turned around and Ren was gone. 

"I want a shard of glass that can track any movement," Rose took a piece of glass from her sword. It changed into a circle. Rose held it up to her eye. Ren was using the walls and roof to propel themselves around. They landed a rain of blows on their opponent. "This is bad..."

"What's wrong?" Hex asked. 

"That woman is growing blades on her body. Meaning each time Ren hits her they take some damage," Rose answered. 

"Ren!" Yuka yelled. She extended a hand and a cloud of ash blew over the woman. "Stay away!" Ren did a somersault and landed on their face. "Devil Technique: Burning Ash." The woman turned into a sword. "I see.....She turned into a metal blade to avoid being burned." Yuka sped forwards and grabbed the hilt of the sword. Her eyes glazed over as she walked forwards. 

"She's possessed," Rose realized. Yuka staggered forwards and Ren began to mumble something. "That's right, they can lift curses. Maybe that's what they're doing," Rose said. 

"No....I can hear it. They're singing!" Hex yelled. 

"What song is that?" Rose asked. 

"I believe it's Ieven Polka," Hex answered. Ren staggered around before vomiting in a corner of the shed and passing out. "Ren! Don't get drunk on me!" Hex yelled. Yuka dropped the sword and it reformed into a woman.